Bunny has a growth and not pooping/eating

[ixcali]

Hello this is sort of an emergency and Im looking for advice while I look for a hospital with a veterinarian that knows about rabbits.


My mini rex Abigail has not been eating and has not had bowel movements or peeing well. I believe it started New Years Eve or the day before. I cleaned her whole area the day before New Years Eve, swept vacuumed and soaked her rug in the tub. While cleaning i keep her out of the way because I use the pet deodorizer carpet cleaner. She was in my walk in closet and had no contact with any of this stuff so Im thinking I can rule out poisoned from cleaning agents.?


New Years Eve I noticed she had not used her litter box and just kept tipping it over and she just urinated all over the rug instead but the urine was dark, red looking. I read rabbits dont really pee blood, idk if thats true or not. But also for context I had been feeding her strawberries the last couple days as a snack so maybe ? I also made her a little tea in her water- honey lemon ginseng but she hadnt been drinking it.


So since New Years Eve, not eating, not drinking no bowel movements. Well yesterday I got really concerned I picked her up to look at her bottom it was very wet like she was not cleaning herself and also found a growth on her shoulder! Its a little bloody and I didnt pick at it but im just so confused because the day before NYE I had trimmed her nails and was touching all over her and did not feel or see anything.


I took her to my hospital and had a coworker help me inspect her bottom and saw she had a large clump of feces right under her anus. We got a warm compress and it started to come off in our hands but we were a little wary of making her bottom too raw or scared that maybe something protruded from there. But Abigail seemed relieved and became more alert, as if it helped her. And while we were doing it we could feel her straining to pee or poo. She also drank some water.


I am panicking and trying to find someone to see her right away. In fact I did try to have a vet from my hospital see her ( I work there) but she never did ! I left her overnight and when I called at 4 in the morning I was told she probably couldnt be seen because of how busy it was. Im going to attach some pretty gross pictures, I hope my post doesnt get removed because I could really use some advice I have been crying and could not sleep while she was away at the hospital. Im hoping it something curable or the growth was stress induced and will go away. Any advice helps thank you.

 

[Alaska Satin]

I don't know if rabbits can't pee blood, but red-colored urine is fairly common in rabbits, and not a problem in itself.

From the first photo it looks like your bunny has mucoid enteritis, which is basically a gut upset causing the intestines to produce lots of mucous in response to the irritation. It's common in weaning kits, but can happen in adults when the balance of flora/fauna in their gut is disturbed. As far as I know, the mucous itself isn't the problem, but the rabbits don't like to clean it up and they get pretty fouled. (I'm guessing it's probably full of whatever pathogen the guts are trying to get rid of.) I doubt the cage cleaners did anything to her, but if she was not used to strawberries that might have thrown off the balance in her gut; even the stress of moving while her cage was cleaned might have set off a reaction. Hard to say, but if you caught it early she'll probably come out okay. Just get her drinking and eating *something* so that she doesn't go into gut stasis.

The poop looks like it's coated in jelly; eventually it's just the jelly coming out as the rabbit won't eat. This situation often involves some gas build-up and discomfort and/or pain for the rabbit as well. You can sometimes relieve this discomfort by giving the rabbit simethicone drops (that's gas drops for babies; if you work in a hospital you probably already know that ).

Many times rabbits with mucoid enteritis drink a ton of water at first, even sitting with their front feet in the water bowl, but if she's not drinking that's the first priority, since they can't/won't eat if they don't drink. Even if it means syringe-feeding her water, get some water in her. If there is a taste she likes, apple, for instance, adding a tiny bit of apple juice to the water might tempt her to drink, but don't add too much as sugar will not help her situation.

Some people suggest gatorade but I don't care for that because of the sugar content. She's already got a messed-up gut, so adding sugar seems like a bad idea.

Adding Nutri Drops to the water is good if she's been off her feed, but you'll probably have to syringe that since most rabbits don't seem to like the taste too much. If she starts losing condition you could also give her Critical Care herbivore assist-feeding formula. Rabbits often do like the taste of that, and some will eat it themsleves. If she won't, you can dilute it and use a syringe to get it into them. I weigh sick rabbits daily to keep track of improvements/losses.

The other thing that might be helpful is a probiotic like BeneBac.

Taking away pellets and providing only hay is usually suggested for mucoid enteritis, though I usually just leave the pellets since the rabbit won't be eating them anyway, and once they turn around it happens quickly and I want them eating normally then. But do give her plenty of clean hay, and replace it often since it will probably get soiled due to her elimination issues.

When did you take the first photo? It looks like there is poop so she's still eliminating something. That's good news. So is the fact when you cleaned her up she felt better and drank a little. You were right to help clean her up; like I said, they don't like to clean up that nastiness themselves, and sometimes it will plug their vent so they can't pee or poop. They'll stop eating if they can't eliminate.

If you can talk to a rabbit-savvy vet on the phone about her, that might be good, but taking her to another clinic might involve far more stress for her than is worth it. We've found that rabbits that need help do best at home with us; in fact the more TLC they get from the people they know, the better the outcome tends to be. We had one little mini rex that would only eat and drink when he was being held and petted. He came out of it after being one of the worst cases I've ever seen.

As far as the scab on her shoulder, I can't really say that looks familiar, but it could have been an abscess that burst. Some lines of rabbits do tend to get abscesses. If so, that might be another stressor that caused the gut imbalance.

By the way, we have found that the mini rex breed has a pretty strong tendency to get mucoid enteritis. I suspect it's related to the dwarf gene, which affects the development of their intestines as well as their other features. Kits that get a double dwarf gene, called peanuts, have such disrupted gut development that they always die of starvation. We were always especially careful about changes in their feed or feeding routine.

 

[ixcali]

Oh my gosh thank you so much for commenting! I had to resort to an online consultation and got connected with an exotic vet who told me pretty much everything you said. I got her the gas-x pills and some baby food, shes already kinda pissed at me for bugging her so much so i had to be sneaky and rub it on her lips trying not to get bit I may have to resort to syringe feeding her but cleaning her butt up has her acting normal just still no normal stool, I keep finding little bits still coming out of her when i check on her area. I may shave it as its starting to mat now.


My hospital only has the one exotic vet and we hardly have rabbits come in to be seen so I dont get to learn a lot about what to do in these situations.


The scab on her should im going to be cleaning daily with saline and Neosporin. I noticed shes licking or maybe nibbling it so i need to find a way to get her to leave it. Im hoping its something stress induced that will go away with care.


And yes I do agree i feel better treating her myself and shes already bouncing around, drank out her bottle, and even ate a bit if hay an hour ago.

 

[Alaska Satin]

Oh my gosh thank you so much for commenting! I had to resort to an online consultation and got connected with an exotic vet who told me pretty much everything you said. I got her the gas-x pills and some baby food, shes already kinda pissed at me for bugging her so much so i had to be sneaky and rub it on her lips trying not to get bit I may have to resort to syringe feeding her but cleaning her butt up has her acting normal just still no normal stool, I keep finding little bits still coming out of her when i check on her area. I may shave it as its starting to mat now.


My hospital only has the one exotic vet and we hardly have rabbits come in to be seen so I dont get to learn a lot about what to do in these situations.


The scab on her should im going to be cleaning daily with saline and Neosporin. I noticed shes licking or maybe nibbling it so i need to find a way to get her to leave it. Im hoping its something stress induced that will go away with care.


And yes I do agree i feel better treating her myself and shes already bouncing around, drank out her bottle, and even ate a bit if hay an hour ago.

That sounds like everything's moving in the right direction! Great news!!!

Benebac or another mammal probiotic might be very helpful at this point. Good clean hay will also be important. That will help her intestines relax and heal, and you should see the jelly lessening and the poops getting more normal.

If the rabbit is objecting to being fed, one trick is to quickly smear whatever it is you want them to injest into the fur on their face, chest and inner front legs (you were onto this by rubbing it on her lips). Unless they're really badly off, they will usually clean themselves up and in the process get the meds or supplement into themselves.

I'd be careful about shaving - that's another stressor, and rabbit skin is super thin in that area. Just sitting her in a shallow warm water bath - you don't really need soap - and gently massaging the mats between your fingers will probably break them up so you can gently pull them out.

 

[ixcali]

Okay ill just try soaking her bottom with a rag then, thank you

 

[ixcali]

Hello this is sort of an emergency and Im looking for advice while I look for a hospital with a veterinarian that knows about rabbits.


My mini rex Abigail has not been eating and has not had bowel movements or peeing well. I believe it started New Years Eve or the day before. I cleaned her whole area the day before New Years Eve, swept vacuumed and soaked her rug in the tub. While cleaning i keep her out of the way because I use the pet deodorizer carpet cleaner. She was in my walk in closet and had no contact with any of this stuff so Im thinking I can rule out poisoned from cleaning agents.?


New Years Eve I noticed she had not used her litter box and just kept tipping it over and she just urinated all over the rug instead but the urine was dark, red looking. I read rabbits dont really pee blood, idk if thats true or not. But also for context I had been feeding her strawberries the last couple days as a snack so maybe ? I also made her a little tea in her water- honey lemon ginseng but she hadnt been drinking it.


So since New Years Eve, not eating, not drinking no bowel movements. Well yesterday I got really concerned I picked her up to look at her bottom it was very wet like she was not cleaning herself and also found a growth on her shoulder! Its a little bloody and I didnt pick at it but im just so confused because the day before NYE I had trimmed her nails and was touching all over her and did not feel or see anything.


I took her to my hospital and had a coworker help me inspect her bottom and saw she had a large clump of feces right under her anus. We got a warm compress and it started to come off in our hands but we were a little wary of making her bottom too raw or scared that maybe something protruded from there. But Abigail seemed relieved and became more alert, as if it helped her. And while we were doing it we could feel her straining to pee or poo. She also drank some water.


I am panicking and trying to find someone to see her right away. In fact I did try to have a vet from my hospital see her ( I work there) but she never did ! I left her overnight and when I called at 4 in the morning I was told she probably couldnt be seen because of how busy it was. Im going to attach some pretty gross pictures, I hope my post doesnt get removed because I could really use some advice I have been crying and could not sleep while she was away at the hospital. Im hoping it something curable or the growth was stress induced and will go away. Any advice helps thank you.

Update!! Very gross images ahead

Was cleaning her again just now, she is having the same tiny poops come out of her still, and the jelly. Im using a flea comb to brush out the fur around the area which is super helpful and makes drying fast.

She let me lay her on her back, wrapped in a towel and on my lap. I was moving her skin around the area and saw this very scary, hard sort of shard?? Almost looked like it was growing into her skin but after I used a damp rag to soak the area i was able to slowly and carefully peel it off from her skin.. super gross. Its reddish looking and she has what appears to be blood ?? Or maybe just her dark urine spotted all over her bottom. Its hard but it will crumble in my hand if I put some pressure on it.

Im also wondering if anyone can identify what is going on with her private area.. It looks like two folded halves on top of each other ? Im not sure if the bottom is just clumped urine/feces but it has what appears to be blood. Im scared its like a prolapsed anus or something swollen but she doesnt really flinch when i touch it her legs just tremble when i have her swaddled up.


Im sorry picture are unclear its hard to hold the phone and spread everything but I will try again if anyone is interested in this gross subject lol.


Gave her some more baby food, hoping she will eat some but I caught her munching on a little hay again this afternoon and drinking her water. Letting her rest for the night now.

 

[Alaska Satin]

Update!! Very gross images ahead

Was cleaning her again just now, she is having the same tiny poops come out of her still, and the jelly. Im using a flea comb to brush out the fur around the area which is super helpful and makes drying fast.

Good idea about the flea comb! I'll keep that in mind for the future in my own barn!

The jelly might take a while to calm down since it's a reaction to offended intestinal tissue. The tiny poops are probably a result of her minimal diet. The fact that she is still passing anything other than mucous is a very good sign.

She let me lay her on her back, wrapped in a towel and on my lap. I was moving her skin around the area and saw this very scary, hard sort of shard?? Almost looked like it was growing into her skin but after I used a damp rag to soak the area i was able to slowly and carefully peel it off from her skin.. super gross. Its reddish looking and she has what appears to be blood ?? Or maybe just her dark urine spotted all over her bottom. Its hard but it will crumble in my hand if I put some pressure on it.

So was it in the vent area you found this? Could it possibly be a clump of oil from one of her oil glands? That can look red/bloodlike.

There is a gland on either side of her vent, and sometimes the oil builds up and looks like red bits of poop or reddish seeds. That could certainly be the case for your doe, since she has not been cleaning herself.

Im also wondering if anyone can identify what is going on with her private area.. It looks like two folded halves on top of each other ? Im not sure if the bottom is just clumped urine/feces but it has what appears to be blood. Im scared its like a prolapsed anus or something swollen but she doesnt really flinch when i touch it her legs just tremble when i have her swaddled up.

I can't really get a good feel for perspective from the first photo. The "folded halves" could be an oil gland... Are your arrows pointing to where you got the "shard?"

I'm not seeing anything that looks prolapsed at all. The trembling legs are no worry - that's a common element of tonic immobility, which is what happens to a rabbit when it's flipped on its back (some people call it "hypnotized"); it makes clipping toenails so much easier!

Are you giving her plain oatmeal baby food? That would be good for the fat content. As long as she's eating hay, I wouldn't worry too much. She won't get fat, for sure, but she won't starve. If she's interested in anything at all, I'd let her have it - kale, parsley (a great appetite stimulator), BOSS (black oil sunflower seeds). Don't give her too much of any treat, but the goal is to keep her eating and drinking - something going in , something coming out (other than jelly). As she eats more normally, you should see her poop getting back to normal.

Getting some Benebac in her would probably be helpful to soothe her gut. In a pinch, we've given our mini rex plain yogurt. Some hoovered it up, other wouldn't touch it, but it might be worth a try.

 

[Scooter1A]

No more strawberries for your gal. Are those clogged scent glands?

 

[ixcali]

Okay so yes I did find it in the vent area, I didnt know it was called that I thought it was a build up I just wasn't sure of what. The arrows I drew were pointing to the “halves” I had no idea what they were but yes it looks like its an oil gland now. Im giving her banana baby food as recommended by the online vet I spoke to. She wont eat it on her own so Im gonna syringe feed her today and see how she does.

Im still having to clean her and she keeps picking up her back legs like she’s uncomfortable or trying to pass something Ill look into getting Benebac

 

[ixcali]

Graphic Video ahead

Was syringe feeding my girl a sort of smoothie I made, had leafy greens, some hay and a bit of apple baby food to maybe entice her to want to consume it. She did good eating it but it seemed to just go straight through her as she peed like 5-10 seconds later as i was holding her. Her pee is coming out dark red like that and its still alarming to me. Im sorry, the movement you see is me just squishing her butt shes not straining there. Wondering if everything looks normal.. or not.

On a side note her poop was bigger today, not tiny little feces, but still had the jelly around it.

Im going to get the Benebac online and put that into the smoothies im going to be making her until she gets better.

 

[Alaska Satin]

Graphic Video ahead

Was syringe feeding my girl a sort of smoothie I made, had leafy greens, some hay and a bit of apple baby food to maybe entice her to want to consume it. She did good eating it but it seemed to just go straight through her as she peed like 5-10 seconds later as i was holding her. Her pee is coming out dark red like that and its still alarming to me. Im sorry, the movement you see is me just squishing her butt shes not straining there. Wondering if everything looks normal.. or not.

On a side note her poop was bigger today, not tiny little feces, but still had the jelly around it.

Im going to get the Benebac online and put that into the smoothies im going to be making her until she gets better.

That actually does not look like the typical red urine rabbits produce, which is usually more rusty red and uniform in color, and not separate red and yellow urine. And it doesn't clot. But it looks like the red fluid near your rabbit's vent might be clotting (A) - is that your perception? Or is it just mixing with the fecal jelly?

Is it possible for you to take a sample of the red fluid into the hospital where you work, and look at it under a microscope? At 400x magnification you should be able to see blood cells if they're there. If it is blood, maybe there's been an internal prolapse or herniation of the uterus or bladder?

Her vent doesn't look normal, either, but probably that's at least partly a result of being irritated. Can you tell what that whitish substance (B) is (is it solid/stiff or just a coating) and where it is (is it on her urethra or coming out of her anus)?

This is a normal-looking vent on a young rex, photo from www.Raising-Rabbits.com (an excellent site for many inquiries):


It's really good that her poop is becoming more normal-sized. Hopefully with her eating again and after getting some Benebac into her she'll come around more quickly, at least in regard to her gut. I'm puzzled by the urine, though. Hopefully it's just a optical illusion that makes it look like clots.

If you're ordering Benebac, maybe you could also get some Critical Care to try. It's designed specifically for nutritionally-challenged herbivores, and most rabbits seem to like it. And/or Nutridrops for rabbits - that's another nutritional booster I like to have on hand; they don't always like that quite so much but it's easy to squirt into their mouth or mix into something else.


Is she still active and interested in things? And what's going on with the scab on her shoulder?

 

[ixcali]

The red fluid on her vent is the urine that came out of her actually, is that what you mean? On point A.

Point B is what im also concerned about I tried poking at it last night and it feels sort of squishy and she flinched away. I really cant tell if its her urethra or anus ? Im going to get another video soon so maybe you can see exactly whats going on. Currently trying to get her seen today but none of my hospitals nearby are available

 

[ixcali]

Got an appointment booked for tomorrow morning

 

[ixcali]

I got a better video of whats going on with my bunnys bottom but its not letting me send it here maybe its too long, 33 seconds .She also passed this poop on her own this morning. I was soaking her bottom so thats why everything is wet.

 

[Alaska Satin]

I got a better video of whats going on with my bunnys bottom but its not letting me send it here maybe its too long, 33 seconds .She also passed this poop on her own this morning. I was soaking her bottom so thats why everything is wet.

That looks like cecotropes, so you know she's eating and that her cecum is working, which is good. The jelly isn't wonderful since it indicates there's still inflammation, and she probably won't eat her cecotropes if they're coated in it. This is another argument for adding both Critical Care and Nutridrops: if she's not eating her cecotropes, she won't be getting the nutrition she needs.

Have you been weighing her? I can't remember if I mentioned it before, but that's one good way to keep track of her losses or improvements in condition.

Let us know what you learn at her appointment! I appreciate your willingness to post all of this information and photos. The more we see and learn, the better we can care for our rabbits and help others to do so! I also want to say that the fact that she's still hanging in there is a testament to your love and dedication.

 

[Scooter1A]

Evidently getting your bunny in to see a vet is as hard as us getting in to see our dentist. Crazy.

 

[kusanar314]

Evidently getting your bunny in to see a vet is as hard as us getting in to see our dentist. Crazy.

In most cases, rabbits are considered "exotic" by normal vets (who typically only see dogs and cats), but the exotic vets are more geared towards birds (parrots usually) and reptiles rather than furry things. So they are kind of in a between ground where no one really knows what to do with them. That can limit your options a lot.

 

[Scooter1A]

wonder what they found out. so nice to have help here cause I know little. cooked my first rabbit today and wow i like it so now I know to breed breed breed. no more expensive chicken for me. thanks rabbit forum.